Sacramento crows about winning the 2010 nationals
Sacramento had no competition, so winning the 2010 masters outdoor nationals wasn’t unexpected. But Bob Burns of the Sacramento Sports Commission is still one proud poppa today in his press release on the subject. The main news: the event’s timeframe. The 2010 nationals will be in July, instead of the traditional first week of August. Bob writes: “The four-day event will be held July 7-11, 2010, at Sacramento State’s A.G. Spanos Sports Complex. Approximately 1,000 athletes ranging in age from 35 to over 90 are expected to compete.” As it turns out, Sacramento will host the 2011 world masters champions almost exactly a year later: July 7-17, 2011.
According to at least this site, July is the hottest month of the year in Sacramento, which is a couple hours inland from the San Francisco Bay Area. We learn: “The warmest month of the year is July with an average maximum temperature of 93.80 degrees Fahrenheit.”
So now I get it: Bring in the athlete bucks when standard tourism is at a low ebb. Oh well. Count on plenty of water and shade — and hope events aren’t scheduled from noon-5 p.m.
Here’s the official news blurb:
For immediate release Dec. 7, 2007
Sacramento awarded 2010 U.S. Masters Track & Field Championships
Three months after landing the biggest masters competition in the world, the Sacramento Sports Commission made a successful bid to host the 2010 USA Masters Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
The four-day event will be held July 7-11, 2010, at Sacramento State’s A.G. Spanos Sports Complex. Approximately 1,000 athletes ranging in age from 35 to over 90 are expected to compete.
Sacramento was awarded the USA Masters Outdoor Track & Field Championships after making a presentation at USA Track & Field’s annual convention in Honolulu.
Earlier this year, Sacramento was named the host city of the 2011 World Masters Association Championships. The 2007 WMA Championships in Italy attracted more than 9,000 athletes from 90 countries, making it the largest track and field competition in the world.
When Sacramento landed the 2011 WMA Championships, it made sense to pursue the U.S. event, according to John McCasey, chief executive officer of the Sacramento Sports Commission.
“This is an opportunity for to provide a quality competition similar to the ones we’ve hosted in the past, such as the U.S. Olympic Trials and the NCAA Championships,” McCasey said. “It will give U.S. masters athletes a chance to see what Sacramento has to offer a year before the WMA Championships, and it will give us an opportunity to meet the unique challenge of hosting a major masters event.”
The 2010 USA Masters Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held in California for just the second time since 1989.
In the past 12 years, Sacramento has held more championship meets than any city in the country. In addition to holding the 2000 and 2004 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials, California’s capital city played host to the 1995 USA Outdoor Championships, 2001 Junior Olympics and four NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships (2003, 2005, 2006 and 2007).
December 7 update:
Bob Burns writes to explain why July and not August: “Ken – August wasn’t possible for Sacramento due to college football at CSUS.”
Hoookay. But I wonder why that wasn’t a problem at Orono, Charlotte, Hawaii, Decatur, Eugene, San Jose. . . . Oh well.
13 Responses
YAHOO! More negative comments about what should be a very positive thing! Nationals in the West any time of year is a good thing for we West Siders, right? Try competing in 100+ heat! We do it all the time in AZ! 93 degrees or so sounds real good! I’ll spend my bucks there happily!
93 degrees with no humidity unlike the 93 degrees with 100% humidity in North Carolina. Oh and an actual warm up track next to the stadium. Too bad about all of those people who passed out from heat exhaustion at all the other Sacramento meets you mentioned… oh yeah there weren’t any!
Some of us LOVE 93 degree weather with humidity, so don’t knock it! I look forward to Sacramento regardless of the weather, I hope the US accomplishes what Riccione couldn’t. A professional meet catered to the Athletes!
I’m glad to have the Nationals, wherever they fall. Let’s be happy we have places to compete. I went to a corporate meet there and none of the ahtletes had problems but some officials and spectators dropped. Sacramento is hot, Charlotte was humid, Orono was windy, better than staying home and dreaming of competing.
Sacramento will be great. Raced at the same track early 90s..very good track. Set my racewalk PR in the 5K on that track. Both the Master natls and World masters in Sacramento should be great meets with excellent prospects, great turnouts, and strong/solid competiton
Excellent! I am looking forward to it. Milan
I cannot wait…2011 I’ll be hitting that next age group!! and 93 is a walk in the park!!
July and August are hot in Sacramento, so it won’t make much difference which month they choose. The humidity is about 50%, so it won’t be as oppressive as NC.
Sac State puts on a good meet. They have a top quality warm-up track very close to the main venue. Also, many reasonably priced rooms are close to the university. Also, it’s only 90 miles from my home.
July 7 to 11 is five days. July 7, 2010 is a Wednesday. I wonder if there is still a chance that the USA Nationals are going to expand to five days as had been proposed recently with the pentathlon staged on a Wednesday.
To echo leigh’s comments, just glad to hear it will be back on the West Coast. Will be attending my first national meet in ’08 in Spokane and then 2 years later in Sacto. For someone from Oregon, no complaints at all about US Outdoor Nationals.
My only complaint is that 2011 Worlds in Sacto is not open to someone 34 years and 9 months old =(
In regards to the football issue, I know the Ducks football facility including Autzen Stadium and football practice fields and facilities are in an entirely different location than Hayward Field.
Sounds like CSUS uses the interior of the track for football as it’s a multi-use stadium for several sports.
I’m curious what everyone thinks about Los Angeles specifically Mt. San Antonio College as the site for a bid for the 2011 Masters Nationals approx. two weeks before the WMA meet in Saramento ? The idea is that some of the Europeans would come in early and stay for both meets.
The other new Idea is to offer a new meet format starting the meet at around 3:30 or 4:00pm and going until 10:30pm. The Track at Cal Poly Pomona about a half a mile away could be used for some of the preliminary heats.
There are plenty of in expensive hotels close by, some even provide shuttle service to and from Ontario International Airport.Please chime in with your thoughts. If there is stong support I will attempt to move forward with a bid for the 2011 Outdoor champs.
Thanks Sac Sports Commission for landing the 2010 championships! I cant believe someone would actually bitch about something as minor as competing at a mild temp of 93 and low humidity??? Suck it up.
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